1. Field of the Invention.
This invention relates to building with concrete or similar blocks and in particular to positioning adhesive material in a dry state between building blocks during construction and then adding water externally after part or all of a structure is completed to activate the dry adhesive material.
2. Relation to Prior Art
Currently, concrete, cinder, clay or other block building is accomplished by positioning wet mortar or other adhesive in a wet condition on contact surfaces of blocks successively. Keeping the blocks horizontally level requires considerable skill, care and time as a result of thickness of the wet mortar or other adhesive material required. Conventionally, skilled labor is employed to variously manipulate building blocks into position along leveling lines set by bubble levels continuously. The problem is compounded by liquescent travel of the wet mortar or other adhesive laterally at uneven rates without adequate control after being positioned accurately. Then when a building or section of a building settles by drying and by a small but critical level of liquescent side-escape of the wet mortar or other wet adhesive, the structure is not reliably even and horizontal. Further yet, the settled building or section of building often cracks as a result of uneven sinking of the building blocks into the wet and side-escaped mortar or other wet adhesive.
These are problems of conventional block building that increase costs of construction by requirement of skilled labor for their solution. The amount and time of skilled labor is increased by the use of wet mortar or other wet adhesive. Wet mortar applied by skilled labor appears to be a carryover from bricklaying that was not as readily amenable to after-wetting because the brick was not sufficiently porous for post-structure absorbency and conveyance of moisture to adhesive in a dry state between bricks.
Use of adhesive in a dry state with after-wetting for block building can be aided by but is not dependent on mesh fittings of interlocking blocks. Interlocking block enhances structural integrity, strength and evenness with relatively less time and effort after bottom courses or layers of block have been set on a suitable foundation. After-wet adhesion with interlocking block, therefore, further decreases skill dependence. "Do-it-yourselfers" can do it more easily. In addition to costing less, less equipment is required, it is less messy and takes less time to use after-wetting adhesion.
Examples of different but related block building are described in the following patent documents. French Patent Number 528,025, issued to Mousset in 1957, described interlocking blocks for application of wet mortar in recessed interlock sections on tops of blocks into which projecting interlock sections on bottoms of successive blocks were inserted. U.S. Pat. No. 2,294,776, issued to Freeman in 1942, taught interlocking-block structure that concealed mortar but still required wet mortar. British Patent Number 270,011, issued to Hugill in 1927, described tongue-in-groove structure generally. U.S. Pat. No. 979,913, issued to Ault in 1910, taught a basic two-hole building block with a top tongue and a bottom groove for use with wet mortar.